As huge numbers of grey nomads head out into Australia’s remote regions, an army of farmers and station owners will once again be opening their doors to these hardy travellers.
For many of those who live on the land and have faced multiple hardships ranging from bushfires and droughts to rodent infestations and floods, catering to tourists has become something of a safety net.
Paul Burke, chief executive of the NT Farmers Association, told the ABC that having a regular income from tourism ‘insulates them and assists in difficult times’.
“Given the current restrictions on travel overseas, we saw that people are looking for unique escapes that are not the Gold Coast or the Whitsundays,” Mr Burke said. “And we soon realised there was a real opportunity to have our membership diversify to create another stream to their business that in drought could secure them longer term.”
And he told the ABC that he hopes travellers who stay on NT properties will become goodwill ambassadors for people who make their living off the land.
“They will get a different perspective of the sheer isolation and difficulties in producing some of the world’s greatest food in difficult circumstances,” he said.
At Mt Bundy Station, a 2,428-hectare working cattle station, just over 100 kilometres south of Darwin, visitors can stay in 100-year-old stockmen, cook and manager quarters set on the banks of the Adelaide River and get to glimpse the inner workings of a cattle station.
“It’s very different to anything down south — It’s a little bit wilder and a little bit frontier-ish,” station owner Sue Witham told the ABC. “Our income is now 50% tourism and 50% cattle.”
Ms Witham said that, in the NT, you only get about six months when you can make an income from agriculture due to the annual wet season. She said her family would not have been able to stay afloat relying on just one income stream.
“We’d have to lease more country to have more cattle to be viable – the tourism side makes the cattle side of our business feasible,” she said. “We’ve created a monster with the tourism side, it’s now bigger than Ben Hur!”
Heading back to Lorella Springs. Last year had taste this year going back for the main course. My wife and I enjoy station stays and do not begrudge them charging for unpowered sites at all. Absolutely love the real bush to a caravan park.
How do we find the location of these places? We’re heading to Darwin via Adelaide in June & would be interested in staying at some of these location.